


Cotton Candy-Fluff

by StrongerThanAnySword



Series: Princes: Captive, Modern [1]
Category: Captive Prince - C. S. Pacat
Genre: Also I have no freakin clue about the age differences, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Auguste likewise lives, Because Laurent blushing gives me life, Carnival, Hopefully zero angst, I SHIT YOU NOT, Let's go to the carnival, Lol I will let you know how that goes, M/M, Nicaise lives and is a tiny baby, Probably some secondhand blushing tho, So I'm going with The Fandom on this, That Damen falls between Auguste and Laurent, Watch out fellow empathic people I'm going to embarrass Laurent, there is cuteness, this is self-indulgent fluff, yee
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-18
Updated: 2016-09-07
Packaged: 2018-07-23 18:11:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,134
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7474578
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StrongerThanAnySword/pseuds/StrongerThanAnySword
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Auguste drags Laurent and Nicaise to the carnival that has just pulled into town.  However, they are not the only visitors, and Laurent is soon dealing with an overamorous carnival-goer who seems set on winning Laurent's affection.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [catwalkninja](https://archiveofourown.org/users/catwalkninja/gifts).



> Ages:
> 
> Auguste: 24  
> Damen & Nikandros: 20  
> Laurent: 19  
> Nicaise: 13

It wasn't that Laurent  _wanted_ to go to the carnival--because he didn't--but when Auguste looked at him like that, eyes shining, brows furrowed, a tiny pout to his lips, teasing Laurent even as he begged...well, Laurent had grumped to himself, he couldn't exactly  _refuse._ He did make sure to berate Auguste for the dirty move, however; Nicaise, their young half-brother, was quickly learning all the same tricks, and for Nicaise to understand the true power of his baby-blue eyes combined with a pout and, God forbid, a  _tear_ , was something Laurent fervently hoped would never come to pass.

All things considered, pout or no pout, Laurent found himself strolling down the fairway, idly scrolling through his phone as he breathed in the dust kicked up by the hundreds of other fair-goers running around, most of them Nicaise's age, screaming and waving around cookies, Popsicles, and other confections clutched in sticky mitts, faces covered in the same sticky mixture.  Laurent avoided them with distaste, nose wrinkling as he sidestepped, barely looking up.  He did, though, every time Nicaise cheered, a tiny smile echoing the one on the little blond's face.  He wasn't really winning things, Laurent noted, but he was having a great time just the same.

Auguste's solid arm was thrown around his shoulders, and Laurent's smile grew just a little.  "What do you want, you oaf?" he murmured.  "Come to gloat about seeing a smile?"

"That's a little harsh," the voice attached to the arm protested, and Laurent chuckled, because he knew that voice.  He smiled up at Auguste, who was indeed smiling back.

"You're a horrible tease," Laurent admonished, eyes shining up at his elder brother.  

"I am not.  You wound me."  Auguste chuckled and squeezed Laurent's shoulders gently.  "Besides, I came to tell you that you have an admirer."

Laurent blinked up at his brother.  "You cannot be serious."  His nose wrinkled in distaste.  "Did you know about this?  Who are you setting me up with now?"

Auguste held up his free hand, protesting, "I did nothing!  He's just giving you the eye, is all."  His blue-green eyes flickered up to some point over Laurent's right shoulder, and his mouth curled in a little smile.  "He seems nice, though."  

Laurent groaned.  "Auguste.  I am not meeting up with some  _random_ just because he has a kink for--."  Glancing down, Laurent raised one eyebrow in his brother's direction.  "For perfectly normal clothing."  He risked a glance over his shoulder and locked eyes with a pair of eyes belonging to a huge, olive-skinned man, perhaps a year or two Laurent's senior.  Laurent ripped his eyes away and looked back to Auguste as he spoke.

"You're wearing long jeans and a t-shirt."

"Exactly my point."

"It is the end of  _July,_ Laurent."

"Exactly my point."

Auguste gave an exasperated sigh.  "Okay, okay."  He tweaked Laurent's ear before drawing away, a sudden smirk on his face.  "Hey, Nicaise!  Let's go get an ice cream, okay?"  As Nicaise shouted in delight, Laurent frowned, and slowly turned to look over his shoulder.

His eyes were a very rich brown, like farming soil, and the thought had the scent flitting through his nostrils like a ghost before being replaced with fried dough and grime.  They sat above a broad, yet somewhat shy, smile.

"Auguste-" Laurent protested, turning to find his brother's form, only to be met with the retreating backs of his brothers, and a sly smile tossed over Auguste's broad shoulder.  "Auguste!"

"Hi there."  The voice was as shy-sounding as the man's smile looked, yet it was also deep and strong; this was not a voice used to timid speech.  Laurent slowly, begrudgingly, turned to look at the stranger.

His eyes, besides being brown, were warm, lighting up when his smile widened.  "Hi there," he said again.  "I just wanted to say--um, hi, and to ask if you wanted to maybe...get some cotton candy, or something?  Maybe play a couple of games?"  

"I know the kind of games  _you_ are asking to play."  Laurent was used to admirers, to people who thought he might be a good lay, and he was equally used to rebuffing them.  He raised the tilt of his chin and narrowed his eyes.  "So no, I do not want to, maybe, get some cotton candy,  _or something._ "

The stranger's jaw dropped at Laurent's tone, and his eyes widened and seemed to resonate with hurt as Laurent went on.  He waited for a moment--just a moment--after Laurent was done before he bowed his head slightly.  

"I'm sorry to have bothered you," he murmured.  Laurent couldn't see his eyes.  "I didn't mean to intrude."  

His words were startling in how genuine they sounded.

Laurent's tongue felt heavy, kind of...tied, and he felt his heart squirm uncomfortably in his chest, but he made no move to stop his admirer as he turned and headed back the way he had come.  Another man with the same olive complexion--a little lighter, perhaps--stood there waiting where Laurent had first seen his would-be suitor, arms crossed, and he shot Laurent a fierce glare when he realized what the slump in his friend's shoulders meant.  As soon as the slouching man returned to his friend, he was being pushed forcibly in another direction, the glare staying unerringly with Laurent until they disappeared in the crowd of people.

Laurent blew out a breath and looked around, trying to locate his brothers.  Auguste had said something about ice cream, and the dairy barn was just to the left a ways, so it stood to reason...

Several minutes later, however, Laurent had found neither ice cream nor Auguste and Nicaise.   _Where could they have gotten to?_ Laurent was not one to fret, but he was definitely becoming concerned; Auguste would  _never_ just leave Laurent somewhere, but where in the world was he?  It had been over an hour since they parted ways...

A booming laugh rang out from behind a game booth, and Laurent's shoulders sagged slightly in relief.   _Auguste!_  He half-ran around the corner, a smile pulling at his lips already in the anticipation, only to find--

Only to find the stranger and his friend, whose glare came back in full force when he saw and recognized Laurent.  Laurent didn't give a shit about  _that,_ though...where were Auguste and Nicaise?  He turned his head fretfully to scan the sea of people.  Where had they gone?

"Take a shot?"

The stranger's voice had Laurent's head whipping back around, and he frowned, off guard.  The stranger, despite his previous tongue-lashing and his friend's elbow digging into his ribs, was smiling that same shy smile--perhaps a little warier this time--and offering a large, grimy softball, once a pristine white and now tinged an unsavory gray, holding it up between them like an offering.

"Go on, I can't get these damn bottles to fall down."  Damen nodded at the trio of bottles standing in front of him, indeed looking untouched.  "It's up to you to save me before I spend all my money!"

"No," Laurent said after a painfully long pause.  "No, I really..."  He turned again and scanned the crowd, eyebrows furrowed, worrying just a little at his bottom lip.  "I really have to..."

"Go on," the stranger coaxed, and Laurent could hear the encouraging smile.  "I can't do it.  At least blow on it for luck, or something."  That line had his friend letting out a small indignant sound--which had Laurent turning to look at the pair, his eyes narrowing as he took in the implied slight.  

"Very well."  He reached out and carelessly took the ball, weighing it in his hand and stepping forward, eyeing his target.  "What do I get in return?"

"A ride on the Ferris wheel?" the stranger said hopefully.  Both Laurent and the unfriendly friend snorted at that.

"I get the prize," Laurent declared, an immediate counteroffer; he hadn't even looked at the prizes.  To his utmost surprise, the stranger was nodding right away.

"You get the prize," he agreed, and he grinned as he leaned against the counter.  "Let 'em have it!"

Laurent narrowed his eyes, slowly raising the ball to chest level, breathing steadily out.  For a moment, he was still, before drawing back and then surging forward, sending the ball flying, hitting the bottles square where he wanted to.

The tower came down.

The carnival attendant laughed loudly, and so did the stranger's friend, albeit much less kindly.  "Only one stack.  Just the same, you get prize!" the booth man announced, his accent thick.  "What do you want, eh?"

Laurent looked up and scanned the prizes carelessly.  "The snake," he said after a beat.  The man grabbed his long hook and raised it to grab the snake off the ceiling.  

"Surprise, surprise," the unfriendly man said, snorting and turning as if to go, clearly expecting his friend to follow--and clearly taken aback when he didn't.

His friend, for the record, was gaping at Laurent.  "You did better in one throw than I did in ten!  That's amazing!  How did you do that?"  He paused and gave a quick grin.  "I'm Damen, by the way, and this is Nik."

"Nikandros," his unfriendly friend corrected him, wrinkling his nose at Laurent.

"Nikandros," Damen allowed, looking at Laurent.  "I didn't get a chance to..."  he stuck out a hand, as if to shake Laurent's. 

Laurent did not shake his hand, but--.  "Laurent."  He shrugged and looked at the bottles, being re-stacked by the attendant.  "They're simply weighted on the bottom.  You have to hit them lower to send them over."

Damen's eyes lit up.  "I see."  He grinned at the game manager and tossed a bill down.  "Three more, please!"  The attendant just chuckled, slid the bill away, and plopped three balls down.  Damen's hand caressed one as he picked it up, and Laurent shifted to the side, as if to leave--but turned to watch, instead, uncertain as to why.  Curiosity, he decided, watching Damen take a pitcher's stance and start to move, not quite missing the way the muscles in his back and arms shifted as he did...

As if perfectly timed, all three stacks bottles shook on the impact mere seconds after each other and went crashing to the ground.  Damen cheered and actually bounced a little on the balls of his feet.  "Yesss!"  He grinned at Laurent, his excitement contagious, seeming to seek approval...which Laurent found himself giving in the tiniest quirk of his lips.  He hadn't expected the other to apply his directive quite so quickly.

Damen was looking up and pointing, accepting a huge stuffed bear from the attendant, and smiling at Laurent again.  "Trade you," he offered, inclining the bear's stuffed head forward.

"You can't be serious."  Laurent glanced down at the small--pitiful, really--stuffed snake in his hands.  "What for?"  Damen merely shrugged, smiling, waiting.

Nik gave another snort.  "All right."  He punched Damen on the shoulder good-naturedly, all the same shooting Laurent a calculating look.  "I'm going to go meet up with the others.  I'll talk to you later."  Damen smiled at his friend and nodded, turning to Laurent even as Nikandros turned away and disappeared into the crowd.

"So?"

"All right," Laurent said warily, offering his meager prize to the larger man in the same manner.  He had his hands full with the large bear he got in return.  

"Well," he said after a moment, "this has been fun, but I have to find--."

"Oh, are you looking for someone?" Damen smiled and nodded.  "I'll help you look!  The guys from before?"

"My brothers, Auguste and Nicaise," Laurent said in confirmation, casting a glance around the crowds.  "I can't seem to find them anywhere."

"Don't worry."  Damen had almost a whole head of height on Laurent--who was not small--and he used the height to his advantage, craning his neck.  "Your hair is like a beacon--hey!"  He grinned.  "I see them over there, by the ring toss!"

"Really?!"  Laurent went up on tip-toe in an undignified fashion, struggling to see.  "Thank God."  The words left his mouth without forethought and caused him to blush--or maybe that was him realizing that he had been using Damen's bicep to steady himself.  He pulled away quickly, and Damen merely grinned at him, not assuming or teasing or making fun at all, just...beaming, really.

His eyes were very kind.

"Do you need me to go with you?" Damen was offering, and Laurent shook his head to signal no as much as it was to clear his mind.

"That's not necessary."  He paused and looked up at Damen.  "Thank you, though."  He tried a shy smile, and the widening grin he got nearly blinded him.

"You are very welcome."  Damen looked as if he might bow, but just nodded, smiling.  "I'll see you around, Laurent."  And he turned, heading into the pressing crowds as Laurent dove in, forging in another direction entirely.

Auguste smiled at him, both a reassurance and a tease, when he saw Laurent approaching.  "There you are, Laure.  Wheredja get the bear?"  His eyes danced, teasing.

"None of your business," Laurent sniffed.  He looked at the dinosaur plush in Nicaise's hand.  "I see you won some things as well."

"Yeah!"  Nicaise grinned up at Laurent and Auguste, powdered sugar dusted all over his lips.  "Let's ride the bumper cars next!"

Auguste laughed and Laurent smiled.  "Very well," Laurent said.  "I'll take you on."

"Not if I get you first!" Auguste crowed with a grin, elbowing Laurent.  "Let's go!"

* * *

 

By the time Nicaise was winding down, the sun had set, the hot and dusty day replaced with the cooling air and twinkling lightbulbs of the night.

"It's practically a different world at night," Laurent noted to Auguste as they trailed behind Nicaise, who was running ahead to stand in line for the spinning dragons.

"Like something out of your books?" Auguste asked with a sly smile, nodding.  "I know what you mean, though.  It's really different than during the day."  He checked his phone and sighed.  "Ten more minutes, I think, and then we should go home.  Was there anything you wanted to do?"

Laurent shrugged and looked around, already shaking his head when something--some _one_ \--caught his eye.  "Actually..."  He paused for a moment before nodding, making eye contact with Auguste.  "Yes.  You'll be all right with him?" 

Auguste's eyes were too sharp, seemed too knowing, and they carried his smile even as he maintained his composure.  "Of course."  He shoved Laurent's shoulder lightly.  "Go play.  I'll be here."

Laurent nodded, face heating slightly, and he turned and walked toward a familiar pair of arms.

_Should I be doing this?  Should I stop?  Turn around?  I could pretend I hadn't seen him, I could pretend I just changed my mind, I could pretend I have to use the restroom instead, I could-_ -.  But it was too late, and Laurent had definitely come to a halt behind that familiar back.  Right behind it.  

Laurent hesitated, swallowing.   _The worst that can happen is that he rejects you, and wouldn't you deserve that?_  He couldn't argue that point; if it came to that, he could lie, say he was merely waiting for the ride...

He cleared his throat and reached forward, hesitant fingertips touching that familiar shoulder and jumping away immediately.

Damen's eyes met him in a moment, and they lit up from inside as recognition bloomed across his face.

"Laurent!"  He grinned, turning around.  "I didn't know you were still here!"

"Hello," Laurent said, somewhat awkwardly, a blush heating his face.  "I saw you and thought...I just thought..."

"Are you here to ride the wheel?"  Damen brightened even more.  "Would you maybe ride it with me?"

Laurent eyed the metal contraption and nodded warily, making Damen laugh in excitement.  "Okay, then!"  He grinned and offered Laurent the white cone in his hand, topped with pastel pink fluff.  "Cotton candy?"

Laurent nodded and took just a nibble, watching the line grow shorter at a rate which he considered wildly inappropriate.  Weren't the operators letting anyone have more than a handful of seconds on the ride?

Damen, oblivious, chatted to Laurent about what he had seen and done since they parted ways, what he'd eaten and what he had liked, the art show in the building next to the wheel and some of the entries...

They were standing at the gate.  "Some of them are mine," Laurent mentioned offhandedly, distracted, but Damen did something that sounded like a combination of a cough and a gasp.

"Seriously?"  Damen's eyes were wide and full of admiration.  "You can't be serious!  You're _that_ Laurent?  Your photos were  _amazing_ and your drawings were incredible!"

Laurent's blush returned.  "They weren't much, really, just-"

"Just fantastic!"  Damen grinned at Laurent as they were directed to their seat.  "Seriously, Laurent, you should enter some of them into the bigger fairs, you would totally win!"

Laurent shook his head, still blushing, and murmured something, but the sound was lost in the ancient squeak and squeal of the metal bar being swung into place and bolted, and Laurent forgot to say anything, clutching at Damen's arm, eyes widening in momentary panic, cursing his lapse almost as soon as it happened.

And it was too late because they were moving and too far from the ground, but Damen was frowning and pausing, turning as much as he could in the seat, looking at Laurent.  "Are you okay?"  And Laurent was swallowing and forcing every single digit to release Damen, one at a time, but he couldn't quite cover his fear.

"Are you...?"  Damen made to peek over the side, and Laurent swallowed and closed his eyes at the sight.

"Laurent?"

A solid, strong-feeling arm was wrapping around his shoulders, and Laurent gave an involuntary yelp as the whole car waved wildly under Damen's shifting weight, but an equally strong leg was pressing into the side of his own, and Laurent was blushing, but he was leaning into Damen ever so slightly...

"Why," Damen murmured, "would you come and ride the Ferris wheel if you are so afraid of heights?"

"I am not afraid of heights," Laurent said automatically, "I am afraid of falling from them."

Damen's chest rumbled in a chuckle.

"Still."

"I...I don't know?"  Laurent frowned and tried again, eyes still closed.  "I mean, I wanted to...I changed my mind, all right?  I wanted to take you up on your offer, but I just...I didn't think about it, and I didn't think ahead, or anything, I just saw you standing here..."  His face was heating up spectacularly, and he swallowed the rest of his babbling.  He could practically  _feel_ Damen grinning.

"Well," Damen managed, "open your eyes.  This is what I wanted to show you, anyway.  The fair at night."

Something in that struck a cord with Laurent--he couldn't say what--and he did, indeed, open his eyes, sucking in a sharp breath as he did.

They were  _high,_ and Laurent crowded closer to Damen as sneakily as he possibly could, but also...it was  _incredible_.  The whole fair spread out below them like Damen had ripped the night sky from the air and laid it under Laurent's feet, mirroring the silver light of the stars above in lights of every color.  The screams and squeals and chatter faded away the higher they got, and soon creaks from the wheel were able to be heard, drowning the other noises out a little.

"It's beautiful," Laurent murmured, looking up at Damen with wonder in his eyes.  "It's truly magical."  He looked down again, gripping the bar in front of him, looking around, ideas for sketches already floating through his head.

He caught Damen's smile out of the corner of his eye, and he looked up again and smiled shyly at Damen.  "What is it?"

Damen shook his head, smiling.  "Nothing."

"Nothing?"

Damen grinned widely.  "You are...you're gorgeous when your eyes do that, and your face does that."

Laurent's blush was back in full force, making Damen laugh.

"And that."

Laurent looked down again, struck by how much he wanted to draw Damen's face the way he looked when he looked at Laurent.

The wheel stopped, and they were at the apex, swinging gently from the momentum of the wheel.

"Laurent?"

Laurent looked up at the sound of his name, and smiled slightly at Damen's suddenly-shy looking face.

"Yes?"

"Would you like to...maybe...do something like this again?  With me?"

Laurent's face was burning to a crisp and he couldn't hold Damen's gaze, his own dropping down to Damen's chest.

"Yes, I...I believe that I would."

Damen let out a whoop and grinned and squirmed a little in his seat.  "Yes!  Yes!"  He laughed and threw his head back as he did so, squeezing Laurent in his excitement.  Laurent had to laugh at that.

"And can I...maybe...can I kiss you?"

Laurent raised his eyebrow, chill climbing into his voice, even though his eyes were dancing.  "It's a little early for that, don't you think?  What would you think of me?"

Damen laughed at the tease.  "I would think how lucky I was!"  He was still grinning at Laurent, and some of his blush trickled into his chest, warming it.  "But okay.  No kissing.  For now."  He was still grinning when he laced his fingers through Laurent's, raising his hand to his lips, brushing them across the skin on the back of Laurent's hand.

As the Ferris wheel began moving again, Laurent couldn't decide where to look: the lights, the stars, Damen's face, or their hands, still entwined and resting on the bar between them.  That was all right, he decided; each of the views was as lovely as the last, and Laurent let himself get lost in them until the ride stopped--far too soon for Laurent's liking.


	2. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The day ends, the fair fades, but other things do not.
> 
> Auguste is too smart for Laurent's own good. x3

"So?"  Auguste was smiling that too-knowing smile, Nicaise cradled in his large arms and looking even smaller and younger than he usually did, slumped onto Auguste's shoulder, completely knocked out and snoring softly.

"So?"  Laurent collected his stuffed bear from Auguste's feet, blushing under the scrutiny.  He did not look at Auguste until his brother chuckled.

"All right,  _don't_ tell me."  The elder brother turned and began to wind his way toward the parking lot through stalls, carnies, and dwindling patrons alike.  "When are you seeing him again?"

"What makes you think that I am?" Laurent asked carefully, picking his way through the dusty fairway littered with dropped food items and discarded wrappers.

"You went to the Ferris wheel," Auguste said simply.  "I saw you, Laurent."

"You watched me?"  Laurent's blush deepened.

"I was curious."  Auguste led the way into the soft, deep darkness, headed toward their low-riding car.

"What did you see?"  Laurent came to a stop, waiting, stomach twisting slightly as Auguste stooped to open the door and buckle Nicaise into the back seat.

"I saw," Auguste said, "my younger brother enjoying himself, despite his fear of heights and usually-intense dislike of strangers."  He paused, then smirked up at Laurent.  "I also saw you two sitting pretty close, and I don't think that would have happened if you didn't want it to."  Another pause.  "It  _was_ okay with you, wasn't it?"  A dangerous half-thought lurked in his voice, carefully controlled.

"Yes," Laurent hastened to reassure him, "it was, I just..."  He shrugged instead of finishing, flushing again.

"I understand."  Auguste clapped his hand gently to Laurent's shoulder, smiling.  "There's no pressure, okay?  If he tries anything you don't like..."  Auguste's face was still good-natured, but his tone darkened slightly and his free hand curled into a fist, knuckles popping.

"I can take care of myself," Laurent rebuffed gently, but a pleasant warmth bloomed in his chest at Auguste's protective attitude.

"I know."  Auguste's grin turned sharp.  "Just the same."

Laurent nodded, feeling overwhelmed, and stepped forward to hug Auguste, burying his face for a moment in his brother's broad chest.  His brother, surprised, immediately embraced him in return, and Laurent shivered at the contrast between the warm hug and the chilly night air.

"I love you, Laure," Auguste murmured, kissing the top of his head as he used to when Laurent was younger, then releasing him.  "And I'm excited for you."  He smiled at Laurent and climbed into the car as his younger brother did the same, the vehicle settling low under their weight.

Laurent fell asleep quickly in the passenger seat as the town lights sped past, hugging the stuffed bear to his chest the whole way home, his face buried in its fur.

It smelled like dust, and cotton candy, and Ferris wheels.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OKAY, you guys succeeded. xD Here is an epilogue for the current tale; I'd written it a long time ago and was fighting against the peer pressure (my mother warned me about you people!) and I simply couldn't do it any more. Never fear! There is much more to come. :)

**Author's Note:**

> So this turned out a lot longer (and tamer) than I thought! :P That's okay though. It's so hard to rush Laurent into anything! I hope you all enjoy it anyway! ^_^ What AU / fic would you like to see next? I've just finished watching _Miraculous Ladybug_ so I'm working on a Magical Girl AU in my head, among other things, but if you have something you want to see, feel free to drop me a line!
> 
> Feel free to drop me a line anyway, to be honest. :P


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